265 Afghan Nationals Were Involved In Terror Attacks, Says Pakistan

Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi rejected India’s statement, describing it as “baseless and irresponsible.” He said Pakistan’s actions were “lawful, targeted and proportionate measures against terrorist infrastructure located in Afghanistan.”

He accused India of interfering in the internal affairs of neighbouring countries for years and undermining their sovereignty and territorial integrity in violation of the UN Charter.

Andrabi also alleged that India had supported militant groups operating from Afghan territory against Pakistan, describing this as a violation of the UN Security Council sanctions regime.

The statement further accused India of acting as a destabilising force in the region.

The spokesperson said Islamabad would continue to take all necessary measures, in accordance with international law, to safeguard the security and safety of its citizens.

Pakistan carried out airstrikes on the Afghan provinces of Paktia, Paktika and Kunar on Sunday evening. At least 28 civilians were killed and another 49 injured in the attacks.

India is the only country to have condemned the strikes. Other countries, including regional states that maintain political and economic ties with the Taliban, have not publicly commented on the attacks.

In a statement issued late on Tuesday, the Pakistani military said the four drones entered Balochistan’s airspace from Afghanistan on Tuesday evening. It said the country’s air defence network detected the drones immediately and successfully intercepted and destroyed them.

Earlier, the Taliban’s Defence Ministry claimed its airstrikes inside Pakistan had been successful and had caused damage.

Pakistan’s military warned the Taliban that such irresponsible actions would only add to the suffering of the Afghan people. The statement said the Taliban should stop supporting terrorism and adhere to the principle of peaceful coexistence instead of engaging in what it described as empty rhetoric.

The military also warned that any further cross-border provocation or adventurism by the Taliban threatening Pakistan’s sovereignty would be met with a swift, decisive and forceful response under its “Operation Ghazab-Lil-Haq”.

Pakistan said any such response would impose a heavy cost on the Taliban.

Earlier, the Taliban’s Defence Ministry announced that it had carried out airstrikes inside Pakistan, claiming it had targeted Islamic State positions and anti-Taliban groups. The Taliban described the operation as successful.

In a post on X on Wednesday, the Afghanistan Freedom Front said it had targeted a Taliban Ranger patrol vehicle in Kunduz city.

According to the statement, the attack took place in the Bandar-e Kabul area of Karte Ariana in Kunduz.

The group claimed its recent attacks in Afghanistan’s north-eastern region had heightened security concerns among Taliban forces.

This is the third attack in two days in which the Afghanistan Freedom Front has claimed to have inflicted casualties on the Taliban.

On Monday, the group also said its fighters had attacked the Taliban police headquarters in Chah Ab district of Takhar province and the district administration building in Kishm district of Badakhshan province.

The Afghanistan Freedom Front, an armed group opposed to the Taliban, has stepped up its guerrilla attacks against the group in recent weeks.

The group previously claimed responsibility for an attack in Laghman province, after which Taliban officials held security meetings.

Taliban authorities have not yet commented on these incidents.

In a statement, the ministry claimed that the Taliban air force had targeted joint positions and facilities belonging to Islamic State and anti-Taliban groups, which it described as forces of evil and corruption, in Pakistan’s Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.

The Taliban did not provide details of the reported airstrikes. However, hours earlier, media outlets under the group’s control had reported a drone strike inside Pakistan.

The Taliban claims that Islamic State maintains military and training bases in Balochistan. It has previously claimed to have targeted the group in the province.

However, this is the first time the Taliban has officially announced strikes against its political and military opponents outside Afghanistan. The group has previously referred to the National Resistance Front and the Afghanistan Freedom Front as forces of evil and corruption, the same term it used for resistance forces during the 1990s.

There are, however, no independently verified reports confirming the presence or activities of anti-Taliban groups inside Pakistan.

The Defence Ministry said one of the strikes targeted a joint facility in the Saranan area of Pishin district in Balochistan.

It claimed the site had been used to organise attacks inside Afghanistan and to provide targeting coordinates for airstrikes that resulted in civilian casualties.

The statement also said the Taliban air force carried out two additional strikes: one against an Islamic State facility in the Qambar Khel area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and another against a joint position used by Islamic State and anti-Taliban groups in the Garm Chashma area of Chitral’s Shah Salim Valley.

Claiming that these sites had been used to plan attacks against civilians, the ministry said that, according to preliminary information, the strikes inflicted heavy casualties and significant material losses on Islamic State members, anti-Taliban groups and their supporters.

The ministry added that the operations were conducted with precision, targeted only the intended objectives and caused no civilian casualties. It warned that the Taliban’s air defence forces would strike any location used to threaten Afghanistan’s security.

The reported strikes come after Pakistan bombed the Afghan provinces of Paktia, Paktika and Kunar. According to UNAMA, those attacks killed and injured dozens of civilians.

The Taliban has previously claimed responsibility for drone strikes inside Pakistan, including near Islamabad and Rawalpindi. This is the first time it has claimed to have carried out strikes using military aircraft.

Local sources said on Tuesday that the commander, identified as Juma, had previously served in the Taliban’s armed forces but was removed from his post several months ago.

According to the sources, he was arrested on Saturday. No further details have been released about his condition or whereabouts.

In recent months, tensions between some local Taliban commanders and the group’s leadership have increased over appointments, control of mining sites and security restrictions.

His arrest also comes as the Taliban leadership seeks to contain growing discontent in Badakhshan and examine internal disputes through a special commission.

Earlier reports indicated that several local Taliban commanders and officials in Badakhshan had been dismissed, arrested or sidelined amid disputes over appointments, mining resources and the group’s leadership policies.